Middletown Teachers' Union Now Wants Heffernan To Resign

MIDDLETOWN, NJ — The Middletown teachers' union has now entered the fray over a matter last month where board member Harmony "Barry" Heffernan was censured by a majority of the board for "conduct unbecoming of a board member."

The teachers' union, the Middletown Education Association (MTEA), wants Heffernan to resign his seat.

Last week, the union sent out a letter saying so, and cc'd all teachers in the Middletown public school district, of which there are hundreds. MTEA president Michael Mason, who teaches at Thorne Middle School, sent Patch a copy of the letter Monday, see above.

Heffernan said Monday he has no intention of resigning.

"I don't work for the MTEA; I work for the people of Middletown," he told Patch. "I'm always going to fight for my kids and other kids. And anybody that won't fight for their kids shouldn't be on the Board of Education."

As Heffernan previously explained, one of his children has been bullied for months now, and he and his wife are not satisfied with the way the school is handling it. According to emails obtained by the Asbury Park Press, Heffernan told a principal he would "wait until the kid walks out of the school" to confront the bullying himself.

The union said Heffernan's behavior was "reckless" and opened the door to other Middletown parents to similarly confront teachers.

On March 28, a majority of the Board voted to censure Heffernan because they "disapprove of his conduct" in an exchange he had with school employees over the matter. It was Board president Frank Capone who first introduced the resolution to censure Heffernan.

There will be a Middletown school board meeting Tuesday night, April 25 at High School North auditorium. It will open to the public at 8 p.m. and will be live-streamed on the Middletown school district's YouTube channel.

Middletown School Board Member Heffernan Censured Over Private Matter (March 29)